Groundwork

Auto · Small-town market · Washington

Auto repair and car care businesses in the Moses Lake, WA area

The auto repair and car care businesses in the Moses Lake, WA area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other small-town markets.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 78 out of 100: High

Ranked #31 of 538 scored small-town markets
#7 of 10 scored small-town markets based in Washington

Listings
142
46 chain locations (32%)
Official establishments
57
−3.4% since 2019
Household spending a year
$42.6M
On vehicle maintenance and repairs · $1,204 a household
Spending per listing
$300K
12% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
40.1
12% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
105,727
+6.3% since 2020

See the auto repair and car care businesses around any address in the Moses Lake area

The site report maps the auto repair and car care businesses on map listings near the address, by name and distance, and sizes the households and spending around it. Or open the report at the center of the Moses Lake area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Survey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure

What this means

The Groundwork market score for auto repair and car care businesses in the Moses Lake area is 78 (high), #31 of 538 scored small-town markets and #7 of 10 scored small-town markets based in Washington. That puts it in the top 10% of small-town markets for auto repair and car care businesses.

Households in the Moses Lake area spend about $42.6M a year on vehicle maintenance and repairs, or $1,204 per household, 26% above the U.S. average. Spread across 142 auto repair and car care businesses, that is $300K per business, 12% above the U.S. figure of $269K.

The Moses Lake area has 142 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 32% of them, against 24% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 40.1, 12% above the U.S. rate of 35.7.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in the Moses Lake area was 57 in 2023, down 3.4% from 2019. That is one for every 621 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 7 SBA-backed loans worth $5.2M have gone to businesses classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in the Moses Lake area. Population estimates show the Moses Lake area grew 6.3% from 2020 to 2025, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%).

How the Moses Lake area compares

The same measures for Washington and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all vehicle maintenance and repairs by the auto repair and car care businesses counted, so it measures the demand for each competitor, not any business’s revenue. Households per establishment does the same with the official count.

Auto repair and car care in Moses Lake, WA area compared with Washington and the U.S.
MeasureMoses Lake areaWashingtonU.S.
Listings per 10k households40.127.935.7
Spending per listing$300K$396K$269K
Households per official establishment621767681
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023−3.4%+1.6%+4.1%
Population growth, 2020–2025+6.3%+3.6%+3.1%
Spending per household on vehicle maintenance and repairs$1,204$1,104$958
Median household income$73,267$98,141$80,734
Groundwork market score7884

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
57−3.4% over the period
Employees, 2023
291
Annual payroll, 2023
$15.1M
One-person businesses, 2023
108Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
14246 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
159The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
7
Amount
$5.2M

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in the Moses Lake area, through June 2026, placed by the borrower’s ZIP code. Official establishments are businesses with payroll; the official counts leave out places with fewer than 3.

Population and households in the Moses Lake area

Population, 2025 estimate
105,727+6.3% since 2020
Households
35,398
Median age
35.0
Homes lived in by their owners
66%
Vehicles per household
2.2
Land area
2,680 sq. mi.
People per square mile
38
Median household income
$73,267+31.9% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$92,003
Median home value
$299,500
Jobs located here
39,791
Daytime population
100,811Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in the Moses Lake area?

These figures cover the whole small-town market. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the auto repair and car care businesses on map listings by name and distance.

Or open the report at the center of the Moses Lake area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Auto repair and car care across Washington

Every Washington market ranked →

The highest-scoring small-town markets in Washington for auto repair and car care businesses, numbered among those based in Washington, with the Moses Lake area marked.

Top small-town markets in Washington

Small-town markets in Washington ranked for auto repair and car care businesses by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Shelton, WA966525.0$514K+7.8%#1 of 538
2Port Townsend, WA882817.1$634K+2.7%#5 of 538
3Ellensburg, WA886331.5$377K+4.2%#7 of 538
4Aberdeen, WA838427.4$400K+3.0%#12 of 538
5Oak Harbor, WA816718.6$630K−1.5%#19 of 538
6Pullman, WA784121.9$439K+1.5%#30 of 538
7Moses Lake, WA7814240.1$300K+6.3%#31 of 538
8Port Angeles, WA749326.5$399K+1.1%#47 of 538
9Centralia, WA7214544.1$277K+6.7%#70 of 538
10Othello, WA672641.3$303K+4.3%#106 of 538

Other business types in the Moses Lake area

Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.

Questions

How many auto repair and car care businesses are in the Moses Lake, WA area?

Map listings as of September 2026 show 142 auto repair and car care businesses in the Moses Lake area. 46 of them (32%) are chain locations. The listings count repair shops, body shops, tire shops, car washes, oil change and parts stores. Official counts show 57 businesses with payroll classed as automotive repair and maintenance, and tire dealers in 2023, down 3.4% from 2019. Another 108 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.

How much do households in the Moses Lake, WA area spend on vehicle maintenance and repairs?

About $42.6M a year, or $1,204 per household. That is 26% above the U.S. average (an index of 126, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 142 auto repair and car care businesses on map listings, it comes to $300K per business. It is estimated from the incomes of the 35,398 households in the Moses Lake area and national spending patterns by income.

How does the Moses Lake, WA area compare with the U.S. for auto repair and car care businesses?

The Moses Lake area has 40.1 auto repair and car care businesses per 10,000 households, 12% above the U.S. rate of 35.7. Spending per business is $300K, 12% above the U.S. figure of $269K. At the U.S. ratio of auto repair and car care businesses to household spending, the Moses Lake area would have about 159, against 142 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 621 households, against one for every 681 across the U.S. The official count fell 3.4% from 2019 to 2023, against +4.1% for the U.S.

How fast is the Moses Lake, WA area growing?

Population estimates put the Moses Lake area at 105,727 people in 2025, up 6.3% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 35,398 households. The median household income in the Moses Lake area is $73,267 a year, 9% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 31.9% from the 2015–2019 survey, before inflation.

What is the Groundwork market score?

The Groundwork market score runs from 0 to 100 and compares a market with others of its kind for one business type: states with states, metro areas with metro areas, small-town markets and counties with their own. A small-town market is a town of 10,000 to 50,000 people and the county or counties tied to it by commuting. It weighs household spending per competitor (35%), households per business with payroll (25%), population growth (20%) and spending power (20%), each ranked against those peers. A higher score means that, taken together, the market has more household spending and more households for each business already there, faster population growth and more spending per household than similar markets. It describes a market, not any one site or deal. The Moses Lake area scores 78 for auto repair and car care businesses (high), #31 of 538 scored small-town markets.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Moses Lake area. It maps the auto repair and car care businesses on map listings near the site and sizes the households and spending within the distance you choose. New accounts get 10 actions over 3 days, no card.

How the score works · Top markets for auto repair and car care businesses · All 56 business types in the Moses Lake area

Screening a site or an acquisition in the Moses Lake area?

A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.

The button opens the report at the center of the Moses Lake area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.

Figures are estimates for research only. Not investment or real estate advice.